"When I was your age, I couldn't swim at all. So don't worry about it. You'll be able to swim soon. Just attend swimming lessons at school, listen to your teachers closely, and try to do what your teacher says. First of all, don't be afraid of water. You can't drown in that narrow pool. Every 'animal' is supposed to float."

A several days later, the swimming lessons finally started at school. On that day, he came home and said loudly, "Do you think I'm so depressed? Noooooo! Swimming at school was really fun. I have a great time with my friends in the pool. I'm a little bit scared, but probably I'm OK. I think I can handle this."
Oh, this is exactly, "Fear is often worse than the danger itself" （案ずるより産むが易し）.
And remember, there's another proverb useful to you, honey. "We tend to be good at those things we like" （好きこそものの上手なれ）. You're gonna be a good swimmer. Just keep trying!

In my case, I really love studying English. If the proverb is right, am I gonna be a good writer in the near future? I hope so.


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Two months ago, my son said, "Swimming lessons at elementary school will start soon. But I don't want to attend those classes. I hate swimming!"

Many of his friends learn how to swim at private swimming clubs or schools. But my son hasn't learned to swim before. So my son can't swim at all.

I said, "You don't have to feel so ahamed of your inability to swim. We spend no money on teaching you swimming. No wonder you can't swim at your age. I guess there are some students who can't swim like you in your class."
"Yes, SOME can't. But MANY friends can swim well."
"You'll be able to be taught swimming by your class teacher. She is so kind, right? I don't think she will be so hard on you. What do you think?" I asked.
"Yes, my teacher is kind. But I feel embarrassed when she teaches me one-to-one. I don't want to receive special treatment. I wanna be treated in the same manner as others."
I replied, "Oh, I totally agree with you, honey. When I was a student, I hated adults or teachers gave me special treatment. So in this summer vacation, your dad & mom will teach you how to swim in a nearby swimming pool."

I tried very hard to encourage him to swim.

To be continued...


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As I said before, I'm interested in NARUTO recently.
NARUTO uses a lot of old expressions and difficult Kanji characters. For example, 傀儡 is not Kairai but kugutsu. Do you read the Kanji character 蠍? It is Sasori (a scorpion). A mysterious organization pursuing Naruto is called Akatsuki （暁）. While I am watching NARUTO with my son on TV, I feel Japanese Kanji characters are so COOL. These days, there is a flood of foreign words & odd Katakana English in our everyday Japanese language. Kanji characters are much more stylish than those false nonsense Katakana English words, I think.

There are some elderly characters in NARUTO. Those elderly people are greatly respected by many young ninjas. Although those elderly people are very old of course, they still have a lot of strength and remarkable skills. Needless to say, they have a good knowledge of everything and always stay calm. I think it shows something of the good old days of Japan, like, 'Respect for the elderly'.

Apparently, my son likes Naruto's headband （額当て）. He wanted to get the replica. That costed me 500 yen (lol). Whenever he plays the card game machine, he wants to wear this headband. I feel a little bit ashamed, but he doesn't care at all. He seems to think that's cool...
Don't blame me, my son, if one of your friends says, "You're wearing such a toy headband. Grow up, kid! That's so uncool!"

BTW, do you know Naruto's favorite phrase 「だってばよ！」 This phrase is replaced with "Believe it!" in English. So funny, huh?
See below for details.
Wikipedia: Naruto Uzumaki 3. Personality

I'd like to use this phrase "Believe it!" to English native speakers who really like NARUTO. Is anybody else interested in Naruto around here? Let's talk about NARUTO.
That is so much fun. Believe it! 絶対に楽しいってばよ！


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Recently my son is really into NARUTO. He likes watching TV series and playing a card game machine called 'Narutimate mission' (ナルティメットミッション). (Needless to say, Narutimate mission is a pun for 'ultimate mission' (究極任務).)

He and I went to see 'NARUTO: Shippuden the Movie' during this summer vacation, of course. I think that was so interesting. It seems that NARUTO has achieved great popularity among young people in other foreign countries.

Naruto is a ninja. However, his ninjutsu (ninja art) is outside the reach of traditional Japanese ninja skills. When he uses his Multiple Shadow Clone Technique (影分身の術), hundreds of Narutos show up. That scene is so spectacular.
Strictly speaking, that might not be ninjutsu anymore. We should call it a kind of magic. So some people criticize NARUTO for giving a false impression about Japanese ninjas to non-Japanese people. I suspect so.
But, think about it - a lot of people in other countries are talking about Nine-tailed Demon Fox (九尾の妖狐) or Missing-nin (抜け忍)... Isn't it interesting, huh? At least, you can learn a lot by knowing how they translate those old Japanese words into English. If you are interested in those translations, check this out! → Wikipedia: Naruto

BTW, I put this article into 'Karen's hobby' category, instead of 'Karen's family' category. No special reason, but I also have an interest in NARUTO, maybe.

To be continued...


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In the middle of summer, it is SO hot indoors, let alone outdoors. We can't live in this concrete jungle without those air conditioners. Maybe we should thank the inventor of this great device.

My family went back to our hometown during this Obon season, but we didn't have to take the Shinkansen or an airplane. Because both of our parents live in the prefecture we live in. We just went to each of our parents' place by car. Thank God! It is so hard to take a train packed like sardines, especially accompanied by young children, y'know.

When we went back to my husband's hometown, we went swimming in a pool. That pool was so big, but a lot of people were swimming with a lot of pushing and shoving. My son & daughter really enjoyed sitting on a float. We had lunch at the poolside restaurant. I had kitsune udon noodles. I don't know why, but I liked eating udon noodles during the break of swimming when I was an elementary school girl. The taste of udon reminded me of those childhood memories.

I forgot to put on some sunscreen lotion on that day. So I got suntanned especially around my neck and shoulders. Maybe I should've worn a long-sleeved rash guard, which protects my skin against 'evil' UV rays. I'll get a cool & fashionable one next year!


☆NOTE☆
be packed like sardines: to be crowded tightly together in a small space (from LONGMAN dictionary)
rash guard → Wikipedia: Rash guard


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Every night, my son & daughter have a quarrel with each other. Each of them insists that he/she is the one who can sleep with their mother, saying, "I wanna cuddle up to Mom in bed! I deserve it."

Even if I make another suggestion, like, "Why don't we, I mean, three of us, cuddle up together?", my son wouldn't accept this. He says, "I hate "three alone" (=San-nin kiri), I wanna sleep with you "two alone" (=Futari kiri) !" He really want to have his mom to himself. Yeah, I'm keenly aware that you really love me, my dear! (I wish I could say this line to some cool guy once in a lifetime.) I have to admit that I've never been loved like this by somebody before.

Many people say boys will become suddenly independent of their parents at some point. I'm not afraid the time comes. That's a very natural thing, right?

After my son & daughter fall asleep, three of us cuddle up together in the end, even in this really hot summer. This might be the best time of my life as a mother. I have warm feelings on incredibly hot summer night.


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Several days ago, my son said, "Why don't we exchange diaries?"
About a month ago, the TV anime Chibimaruko-chan aired an episode where characters are exchanging diaries, which apparently interested him.

"Sure. Do you wanna write a diary first?" I asked. "Yes, of course. I'm not so sure what to write, but I'll give it a try."

The following day, he handed a notebook to me. I read his diary aloud.

Dear Mom
It's a beautiful day today, isn't it?
(Question) Which do you like, beetles or stag beetles?
Do you like to travel?
Let's go to swim in the pool anytime soon. (End)
from *****

On the left part of the page, he drew a picture of a beetle. That was so huge & masculine.

I think it is so funny that he talked about the weather for openers. It's like adults' conversation: "It's so hot today, isn't it?" "It looks like rain." Probably he wanted to add a touch of maturity in his diary.

I wrote him back the next day.

Dear Little One
It's cloudy, fine later today, isn't it?
I prefer beetles to stag beetles.
Because those big horns of beetles are so cool.
By the way, I like to travel, indeed.
I think you're getting better at swimming. I'm really looking forward to swimming together!
from your Mom

Mmmm... I don't know which is 7-year-old-boy's diary. My sentences are not sophisticated at all. It's so difficult to write something fascinating in Japanese, let alone in English. That's why I always hesitate to write something on this blog. I'd better practice writing more & more. Maybe this 'exchanging diaries' thing might be a good chance to write something about my life on a daily basis.


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My husband brought a bunch of bananas to the lodge in order to lure beetles. He broke each banana into pieces, and place them around our lodge, like on the window frames, handrails, or stairs to the front door.
Additionally, he went to the entrance to the forest and found some Kunugi trees (sawtooth oak?) and filled knots of trees with pieces of banana.

"This banana acts as sap of trees (Jueki), which is supposed to attract hungry beetles all over the place," he explained to his son.

My husband woke up many times during the night. He just said, "I have to pee," but I knew he went to check if some beetles would gather around the banana he set around the lodge. He had been worrying about bananas & beetles and he couldn't get it out of his mind while sleeping. You are a 7-year-old kid, or what? My son, who is actually 7 years old, was sound asleep in the lodge, though.

After all, everything he had tried had ended in failure. That banana attracted some big ants, butterflies, kanabuns. However, there was NO sign of beetles.
(Note) Strictly speaking, a kanabun might be a kind of beetle. In this case, I mean that a beetle is a Kabuto-mushi or a Kuwagata-mushi.

My husband & son looked depressed. My husband said, "I had a dream last night. In that dream, I captured a very big beetle and raised a cry of triumph, "Yeah, I got it! I did it! Can you believe this, honey?" When I realized it was just a dream, I was SO shocked..."

But he had a satisfied look when we left the lodge. I guess he did everything he could in his own way. Nice try, honey. I hope your long-cherished dream will come true ASAP. I'll follow you, wherever you go, however deep the forest is. Besides, my son & daughter said, "It was so fun to stay at a lodge. I wanna go there again next year!" Good for you, honey.


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The main reason why we decided to stay at a lodge in a campsite is my husband & son really wanted to catch some beetles in the forest. To buy some beetles in a beetle shop is really fun, but my husband has been waiting for the chance, in his entire life, to capture them in a natural environment.

In the lodge, it was SO hot. Besides, it was so damp and dark. It was too small for our family to sleep together. BUT I felt a little excited. I can't tell you exactly why. Maybe I felt the lodge was like a secret base in my childhood. The rest of my family looked thrilled with this new environment.

Each of us opened the windows. Most of windows had screen doors (Amido). After opening those windows, a gentle & pleasant breeze came through the lodge. We all felt comfortable and enjoyed the natural fresh air.

We rested for half an hour in the lodge. After that, we decided to take a walk around the area. We walked uphill and looked around to find some insects. We heard the loud sound of cicadas. Sometimes we could hear some birds chirping beautifully. I appreciated that natural environment thoroughly.

My husband & son was straining their eyes in order to find beetles or stug beetles. But it was early in the evening. They were not be able to find any beetles then. But we were not so sad. That's what we suspected. We had to wait until midnight.

My husband brought a bunch of bananas to the site. That's his secret. Do you think his carefully worked-out plan would be successful in the end?

To be continued...


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